French students rally for deported Roma girl

A student has written and crossed the name of France's Interior Minister Manuel Valls as she demonstrates with other students in front of Turgot high school in Paris, on October 17, 2013. (AFP/KENZO TRIBOUILLARD)

A number of city schools in Paris were blocked Thursday after outraged high school students took to the streets to protest the expulsion of a 15-year-old Roma girl. Leonarda Dibrani was detained during a school trip and deported with her family to Kosovo after their application for asylum was rejected.

Protesters have especially lashed out on France's Interior Minister Manuel Valls who initiated an investigation into the Dibrani family's expulsion. Valls, a well-known politician in France, only became a French citizen at the age of 20. He has been outspoken about the Roma population and believes they should be sent back to their countries of origin.

Critics online were calling on Valls to resign with the hashtag #VallsDemission (Valls Resign). Even protesters on the streets shared photos asking Valls to stop expulsions and withdraw from his position.

The protests also shed light on the story of Khatchik Kachatryan, a 19-year-old student who was recently deported to Armenia. In the photo below, a protester holds a sign that reads: "Support for Leonarda and Khatchik".

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Starting in January, Romanians and Bulgarians will have the right to travel and work in European Union member countries. Despite the upcoming changes, expulsion of Romanians and Bulgarians have been on the rise in France.

Immigration issues in France have typically been met with mixed reactions. Many online supported the Dibrani family's expulsion through the hashtag #DehorsLeonarda (#OutLeonarda).

@Mindworkout:If you can't feed your children while they are hungry. Do you invite the entire neighborhood for dinner?